Portuguese Football Federation

Porto step back on to Liga pedestal

Published: Sunday 10 May 2009, 23.52CET

Captain Bruno Alves scored the goal that gave FC Porto their fourth consecutive Portuguese league crown, a sixth in the last seven seasons and the 24th title of their history, thanks to a 1-0 win against CD Nacional.

Porto step back on to Liga pedestal

Captain Bruno Alves scored the goal that gave FC Porto their fourth consecutive Portuguese league crown, a sixth in the last seven seasons and the 24th title of their history, thanks to a 1-0 win against CD Nacional.

Captain Bruno Alves scored the goal that gave FC Porto their fourth consecutive Portuguese league crown, a sixth in the last seven seasons and the 24th title of their history, scoring two minutes into the second half to claim a 1-0 win against CD Nacional at a sold-out Estádio do Dragão.

Helton testedTwo goals from Brazilian striker Liedson had given Sporting Clube de Portugal a 2-1 home success against Vitória FC on Saturday, so Porto knew they needed all three points to celebrate the title in front of 50,309 spectators. Brazilian forward Nenê, the league's leading scorer with 19 goals, tested Porto goalkeeper Helton with two long shots in the first half while Lisandro had the Dragons' best chances. The Argentinian striker was involved shortly after the break too, feeding Alves from a Raul Meireles corner and watching as the only player to have featured in every minute of the club's 28 games this term headed in.

Ferreira featFourth-placed Nacional did not give up their cause, but Porto controlled the match and secured the victory to make Jesualdo Ferreira, who turns 63 on 24 May, the first Portuguese coach to win three league titles in a row. Porto now boast 66 points, six more than Sporting with two matches left. The success means Porto have qualified for next season's UEFA Champions League group stage. It is also only the third time that a club has won four titles in a row since the modern professional league began in 1938/39. Sporting were the first team to hit that landmark, between 1951 and 1954, and Porto were the second, from 1995 to 1998, having then added a fifth crown the following year.

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